Replacing David: Plouffe-by-committee?

Obama's right hand man in the West Wing and campaign consigliere, David Plouffe, has basically left the building, according to several White House sources who say they haven't seen him around much since the fiscal cliff deal.

(He did stand up for a light USA Today exit interview recently, and has been helping to frame the inaugural and SOTU. But he isn't diving into anything new, sources say, and is suffering from a bad case of senioritis).

So who replaces Obama's (semi) irreplaceable man?

In reality, no one. But there are a few emerging clues on staffers who would assume Plouffe's multiple roles as the top in-house adviser on communications, messaging, political strategy and freelance Obama-whispering. Think Plouffe-by-committee.

Several administration officials tell me that current Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer (who didn't comment, and seemed annoyed by the inquiry) is likely to get an enhanced role sometime soon, and would possibly take over the messaging, comms and sounding board role that Plouffe occupied.

It's not a stretch for Obama lifer Pfeiffer, who emerged as Plouffe's right hand man over the past 18 months, and has been privy to many of the strategy meetings attended by Plouffe. What Pfeiffer's title will be is unclear, but multiple sources tell me that his highly-regarded deputy Jennifer Palmieri, who enjoys strong relationships with the national political press, would be considered the top choice for CD if he's moved up the line (Palmieri also refused to comment, though in a nicer way than Pfeiffer).

It's less clear who will take over the other half of Plouffe's brief -- since Obama shuttered the White House political office halfway through his first term.

One answer, according to several people in Obama's orbit, lies outside the West Wing in the person of Jim Messina, the hyper-resourceful '12 campaign manager credited for establishing and executing the state-of-the-art Obama ground and analytics operations. Messina -- a political juggler adept at caring-and-feeding outside groups and for coalition building -- had apparently flirted with cashing in after closing up shop in Chicago.

But he'll be running and restructuring OFA a few blocks from the White House, creating a new power center and dealing with messy political matters best handled outside the gates of official Obama-dom. The presence of such a player -- an operative Obama has repeatedly turned to during times of highest stress -- in Obama's physical proximity is no accident, administration officials say.

The second-term reorganization process is being overseen, no surprise here, by Obama's most trusted insider, Pete Rouse, who has tried to keep the circle of decision as small as possible. He's being assisted by Valerie Jarrett and Deputy Chief of Staff Alyssa Mastromonaco, who has quietly emerged as the most powerful female aide in Obama's direct orbit.

As has been reported elsewhere, NSC staffer Denis McDonough remains the odds-on favorite to replace Jack Lew as chief of staff, though West Wing sources caution that no decision has been relayed, even informally, down the line.

Deputy Secretary of State Tom Nides remains a dark horse. Longtime Joe Biden adviser and Obama debate prep guru Ron Klain, whose brains and energy put him in Rahm Emanuel territory, isn't being considered for the post, despite some reports to the contrary.